Biography

Connie Diekman, MEd, RD, LD, FADA

Connie Diekman, MEd, RD, LD, FADA is director of university nutrition at
Washington University in St. Louis. Diekman is the immediate past president of
the American Dietetic Association (ADA). Previously she has served as a
delegate from the state of Missouri to the ADA House of Delegates. Diekman
served on the House of Delegates Leadership Team from 2004-2006 and has been a
member of the ADA's Board of Directors since 2004. She is a former chair of the
American Heart Association-Missouri affiliate.

Diekman is also a former media spokeswoman for the ADA. In this position,
she has been quoted in thousands of magazines, newspapers, and on the Internet.
She has appeared in numerous radio and television interviews at the local level
and on national shows, ranging from the Today show to the Oprah
show. Diekman currently serves on several advisory panels, providing her
expertise in communications, especially related to consumer behavior
change.

Prior to her appointment at Washington University, Diekman was in private
practice working with physicians, corporations, and as an instructor at
Fontbonne University in St. Louis. She is the voice of the "Eating
Right" minute, which airs daily, on WBBM radio in Chicago. She is a former
television nutrition reporter with the NBC affiliate in St. Louis and the local
FOX affiliate.

Diekman has received numerous honors, including the Alumni Distinguished
Service Award from Fontbonne University, the Outstanding Dietitian of the Year
Award from the Missouri Dietetic Association, the Recognized Young Dietitian of
the Year-Missouri, and the Dr. Arthur Strauss Award, from the American Heart
Association-St. Louis.

Diekman earned her master's degree in education-counseling from the
University of Missouri-St. Louis and a bachelor's degree in food and
nutrition-dietetics from Fontbonne College (now University). She completed her
dietetic internship at St. Louis' Barnes-Jewish Hospital.